Hailey’s Blog

I’ve been meaning to get pictures posted from my FABULOUS trip to Asia – but haven’t. After I got home, I started classes two days later, and let me just say…this semester is going to kick my A.S.S. Seriously. Then, to top it off, I got sick. I went to the nurse practitioner TWICE last week, and all she told me was that it was allergies, and she gave me some prescription cough stuff. Well, I know this wasn’t the smartest thing I’ve ever done, but…. I went to the Grimes Co. BBQ cookoff last weekend. BF was cooking, so I HAD to go be supportive, right?!? Well, stupid. I had fun…or as much fun as a sick person can have…and then woke up on Sunday with a HORRIBLE “crick in my neck.” Well, after this crick not getting better after 3 days (which means 3 days of NO sleep, b/c no matter what I did, I couldn’t make the pain stop…not even vicodin…) I drug myself up to Urgent Care last night. Verdict – severe ear infection – no crick in my neck. I now have a z-pack (which is what I TOLD the nurse last week that I needed), and hopefully it’ll get me back in tip-top shape very soon! Once that happens, I promise to do a trip update with pics and all! The worst part of this is that I’ve had SO many assignments for class that I’ve had to turn in knowing that they’re not my best work because I just haven’t even been able to process my readings Time to redeem myself as soon as I get back to feeling better!!!!

Hope everyone is having a great 2010 so far – can you believe it’s FEB?!?!

*Hugs*

Blog friends – when we met up way back when in December, I mentioned to y’all that a group of my girlfriends were starting a book club. Well, our first meeting is going to be tomorrow – and we’ll decide on a book to read and just get to know each other then. If you’re interested and want to know the specifics on the location and all that jazz, send me a comment and I’ll message it to you

*Hugs*

A few of my other blogger friends have posted their decade reviews – so I decided I’d steal the idea from them    Thanks Vicki and Christine!

So…here goes.  Below you will find what the past 10 years has brought for me.

-  High School Graduation
-  Beginning of college at SWT
-  Strutters at SWT and the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade in NYC (and the Kaufmann’s parade in Philly)
-  Met some of my best friends in the world at SWT…Eat ‘Em Up Cats!
-  Travelled to Costa Rica with the National FFA Association
-  Took a random trip to Camp Lejune, NC to see some crazy boy, lol
-  College graduation
-  My first REAL job
-  Got married
-  Survived then-hubby’s deployment to Iraq
-  Lost one of our best friends during said deployment
-  Bought 1st house
-  Got divorced…even though ex and I survived the deployment, our marriage did NOT (I kept the house, though:)  )
-  Gained about 40 lbs during the deployment and divorce….
-  Became “Aunt Hailey” or “Hai” to TONS of new little ones (thanks friends for keeping me in supply with babies!)
-  Lost most of the weight I had gained, and still working on getting off the rest!
-  Started dating bf – and even though it’s controversial, I’m happy again and I’m ME again – and that’s all I care about!
- Started Grad School at A&M…I’m finally an Aggie almost a decade after graduating from HS!

I can’t believe the path the last 10 years took – but it’s been a great one, even with the curve balls along the way.  I’m sure the next 10 will be filled with even more curve balls, but also with more joy and laughter and happiness and I can’t wait for it!

Here’s to the 2000’s!

*Hugs*

I’m such a horrible blogger…but hey, it is what it is    The past couple of months brought about the end of the Aggie football season (and since I pulled our tickets for the t.u. game, we had AMAZING seats…I’ll post some pics later), finals, the end of deer season, and now…the end of a decade is upon us!  In just two short days it will be 2010, and I’ll be on my way to Asia!   Since I haven’t blogged in so long, I’ll just do a quick recap of the past two months….

One of my old work besties, Rena, has been in town from Bahrain, so we got together for a couple of happy hours – one with her fabulous mom, and another with a great group of blog girls.  I’m so excited I got to meet Jill, Vicki, Christine,  Jenniloo, jmo, Selina, Jessica, Kelly, Jennifer, and Sarah.  Jill got a pic of the whole group – you can see it here.  It was really fun to hang out with a big group of girls…only problem with it is that when you sit at a rectangular table, it makes it hard to talk to everyone.  Just means we’ll have to do it again!    I’m so glad I got to see Rena before she heads back home…after my trip to Asia, the goal is to start saving for a trip to Bahrain!!!

Thanksgiving came, and as I mentioned before, Lance and I had AWESOME tickets for the A&M/t.u. game on Thanksgiving night.  I’ve never been in a stadium as loud as Kyle Field was that night – between it being a huge rivalry game, as well as the 10th anniversary of Bonfire falling, the Aggie Spirit was definitely felt that night.  On Friday, I met mom and dad up at our deer lease after I ran by Old Navy and did about 15 minutes of Black Friday shopping

The next two weeks were spent trying to get over a cold and get everything turned in for my finals.  My last paper and final were due on the 11th, and I got everything turned in and was able to relax for one of my good friends weddings on the 12th!  Brooke and Tim had a beautiful ceremony overlooking Lake Travis (which, unfortunately, still needs a good bit of rain to come along for it to recover), and a beautiful reception to follow.  Mike and I left the reception around 9:00 – and I was BEAT!  I got home and fell straight to sleep while he stayed up and watched the last round of the NFRs.  So glad I have DVR!

My parents came to my house and delivered my Christmas present a couple of days early – a new china cabinet/hutch and wine rack/bar!  I LOVE it!  We left my house and went to our deer lease on the 23rd to spend Christmas there…and we got a WHITE CHRISTMAS!  For this Texas girl, that’s a first!  I’ve had white Christmas’ before…but NEVER in Texas!  It was so much fun, but I’ve been trying to kick a cold before I leave on my trip.  We left the lease on the 26th and had our family Christmas with my grandparents, aunts, and uncles on the 27th.  After I left my parents, I went to Anderson to take the kiddos (Mike’s neices and nephews) their presents, and to spend the evening with him.  I had been complaining that I needed some new jeans a while back, and he was paying attention and I now have a new pair of my favorite Cruel Girls!  

Monday night one of my besties, Kim, came over to visit – she lives in Vermont now (unfortunately), so we don’t get to see each other all that often, so it was SOOOO good to catch up!   (A trip to Vermont/New Hampshire/Boston needs to be in the works…but that falls into the same category as my trip to Bahrain…I have to get back to saving after this Asia trip!) 

Last night I got all of my things packed for the trip, and after work today I’ll be heading to Anderson to hang out for New Year’s.  We have no plans of going out, which is perfectly ok with me – there’s no way I want to be hungover on that flight!  I’ve done that once before in my life, and it was the absolute most horrible flight I’ve ever been on.  Never. Again.  I’m actually really looking forward to maybe getting a few sparklers and just cuddling up with my honey to ring in the new year!  (With a glass or two of champagne, of course….I said I wasn’t going to be hungover on the flight…didn’t say that I didn’t want to drink anything, lol).

Well, that’s pretty much my little life in a nutshell since November.  Things are going well on the work front, on the boy front, and just in general.  I get back from Asia on the 17th, and classes start on the 19th, so I’ll be gearing back up to study as soon as I get home.  Ahh…grad school….  

I hope everyone has a safe and very Happy New Year!!! 

*Hugs*

I had been fretting about asking my boss to take two weeks off in January for the Asia trip.  I’ve only been with the Agency for a year at the end of this month, so I didn’t know how it would look if I asked to take off for two solid weeks.  I was expecting him to talk about workload, making sure things were complete before I go, etc…if he even said yes at all!  Well, here’s how the conversation went:

Me:  I have a question for you…what is the policy for taking extended vacations?
Boss:  How long of an extended vacation?
Me:  Two weeks.
Boss:  That’s fine, no problem.

….end of conversation.  Well, I told him when I’d be taking off when we were just chatting, and what it was for, but that had no impact on his decision.  at.all.  I was expecting to have to sell him that this was a great school opportunity and it would be awesome if I could take off to go…nope, he didn’t care.  As much as I don’t enjoy sitting at a computer all day for my job, the benefits of the job outweigh the negatives here, that’s for sure!  When I was consulting, there was NO WAY I would have been able to take off and do this trip…wait, back up….there’s no way I would even be in grad school.  So, I just have to say, thank you State job for allowing me the time to do what I want with my life!

So, I booked my flight yesterday (I found it on expedia.com for $150 less than the travel agent’s price!!!!), and now I just have to renew my passport when I get back from Mexico next week.  So. Excited.  Mexico for Shannon and Joel’s wedding next weekend, then Asia on Jan 1.  Having parents and a boyfriend that support me in spending the money and jetting off to some places that might not be the safest (ie. crime, cobras, and vipers…), really is amazing!  Life is fabulous!!!!

*Hugs*

A couple of weeks ago I got an e-mail with a study abroad opportunity through A&M – to three countries in Asia!  I forwarded the e-mail to my mom, honestly not even thinking it would be a possibility of going…and she replied “you know, that might be a really good opportunity!”  So…the wheels started turning, I figured out vacation time (which, I still haven’t ran this by my boss, but I’ll have enough time by then, so it should be ok.)  Anyway, it is for 3 hours of credit – 17 days in The Philippines, Singapore, and Sri Lanka.  Below is a picture tour of our itinerary…I’ll see if the trip lives up to the pictures, which I’m sure it will! : )

Jan 1 – Leave Houston for Manila, Philippines (arrive Jan 3)

Jan 4 – Tour Manila

Jan 5 – Visit the Asian Development Bank

Jan 6 – Head to Los Banos, Philippines

Visit The University of the Philippines

And the International Rice Research Institute – the picture below is of Dr. Borlaug at IRRI

January 7 – Visit a Pump Storage Station in Los Banos

Jan 8 – Back to Manila

Jan 9 – Leave Manila for Singapore

Explore Singapore

Leave Singapore for Colombo, Sri Lanka

Jan 10 – Explore Colombo (I sure hope I get to see something like this!)

Jan 11 through 13 – Leave for Kandy

Visit University of Peradeniya 

the Royal Botanic Gardens

AND Sigiriya Rock

Jan 14 – leave for Ihala Milawa

Jan 14 – 16 Visit Nilmini Tea Plantation

And the Dellawa Forest Reserve (I couldn’t find any pictures of this

Jan 16 – head back to Colombo

Jan 17 – Fly back to Houston!

I’m super excited – now I just have to ask for the time off!

*Hugs*

On the way home from work I stopped by HEB to get the goods for a delicious soup (I’ll post that recipe on Friday)…then went home to begin dinner.  Normally, I let Tegan inside as soon as I come home, but since the weather was so nice yesterday afternoon, I decided to start dinner and THEN let her in.  Also normally, when she hears me come home, she starts crying to come inside.  Yesterday, she didn’t.  I thought that she was just enjoying the nice weather, so I didn’t think anything of it….  Until I went to let her in halfway through cooking the soup.  I opened the door and called her…and she didn’t come.  I searched EVERYWHERE outside (thinking that obvs there’s a hole in the fence or something, b/c the gate was shut)…no holes.  And then I looked at the gate.  So much for thinking.  Gate was open, and Tegan was nowhere to be found.  I drove the neighborhood until it was almost dark, then I walked the neighborhood.  I called my neighbors, who were also going for a walk and they looked for her.  No luck.  Posted ads on craigslist and our HOA website message board.  No calls.  I got up this morning, still sad and scared, because let’s face it – Tegan’s spoiled and she was gone ALL NIGHT!  So, I printed out fliers this morning to plaster the whole town with, and was on the phone with Urs when I realized that you can’t post signs on mailboxes…  So, I found a metal pole that had a Lost Dog sign on it…only when I got out to post my sign, it was a FOUND LOST DOG flier…with pictures of my TEGAN!    I called the guy immediately, and he said that she was in his garage and safe.  He found her when he got home early from work yesterday, shaking in the rain at the foot of his driveway.  This nice man took her in, fed her and gave her water, and I get to go pick up my baby after work today.

Needless to say, I will be double and triple checking the gate from now on…and Tegan will be getting a pretty new collar and microchip VERY soon!  Thanks everyone for sending good thoughts for her to be returned – I would have been completely devastated if something had happened to her!

My two babies, Tegan and Midge.  Had to put Midge down recently    so now it’s just me and Tegs.

*Hugs*

So, it’s been almost a month since I’ve updated!  Basically, my life now consists of working and grad school…with occasional fun thrown in one night a weekend.  So far, school is going well – just a lot of busy work!  I have my first (and only) midterm next week…I can’t believe the semester is halfway over!!!! In some ways I’m kicking myself for taking 9 hours this semester, plus working full time, but hey, it’s 9 hours closer to that Aggie Ring!    (not that I’m counting or anything….BUT….18 more to go!!!)

Right now I’m waiting to find out details about a study abroad trip to Singapore, the Philippines, and Sri Lanka from January 2-18.  I’m really hoping everything works out – money will be the biggest factor, so I’m hoping the budget looks right when they send it to us!    It’s a 16 day trip, but thanks to MLK day, only 10 days off work!  PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE let this work – it’s a great opportunity for my master’s degree and will def be a nice addition to my resume!

This week I’ve been house/dog sitting for my BFF Jason, and his wife Katie, while they are in Mexico on their honeymoon.  I just have to say that Pflugerville is SOOOOOOO much closer to work than my house…too bad I can’t sell and move there, I totally would! 

So, not too much exciting going on around here, just keeping my nose stuck in books (or rather, nose stuck in Blackboard).   One REALLY SUPER EXCITING thing that’s coming up very fast….Rena comes to the states in 8 days!!!  And, she’ll be here for 3 months almost!!!  YAY YAY YAY!  I can’t wait to see her and catch up and hear all about Bahrain

I’ll end today with a few pics of my occasional entertainment ventures – namely, Aggie Football and going to see Jake Hooker…and a night out with Kate, of course!   

Me and A at A&M vs UAB

Flying T with fun camera setting

Beautiful sunset!  A&M vs UAB

Me and Kate @ The Ranch on West 6th

Me and my parents in Navasota seeing Jake

Me and Jenn in Navasota

My honey and Me at Jake

And last, but not least, Me and Sis at Jake

*Hugs*

In remembrance of the 9/11 terrorist attacks 8 years ago today, I found the following poem by 7th grade student Hannah Schoechert.

We’re Still Standing
© Hannah Schoechert

Those twin towers
Standing tall with pride,
Fell with grieving hearts.
Stunned, America cried.

But we’re still standing.

Bin Laden tried
To crush our land,
But we stood our ground
With our flag in hand

And we’re still standing.

Red for the valor
And the blood that fell.
White for the purity
Our heroes tell.
Blue for the justice
That will be done,
Proving once more
These colors don’t run

And we’re still standing.

By: Hannah Schoechert
A 7th grade student

My mom always used to make “Chicken with Mixed Vegetables”…and to this day it is one of my all time favorite meals.  It’s super easy, and you can use  chicken OR beef – and for that matter, I’m sure turkey breast would work, too!  Once again, I don’t have a picture – I’m working on getting better at that  :)

Beef (Or Chicken) with Mixed Vegetables

1 lb boneless, skinless chicken breasts (I used beef the last time – just sirloin cut for kebobs, and it turned out great)
1/2 large sweet onion, diced
1 head cauliflower (about 2 cups)
2 crowns of broccoli (about 2 cups)
1 can waterchestnuts (I L.O.V.E. waterchestnuts – so I use two cans)
1 cup carrots (I don’t really like cooked carrots, so it just depends on my mood if I put them in)
Soy Sauce
Corn Starch

Sautee onion in about 2 tablespoons of olive oil for 2-3 minutes, until soft.
Cut chicken into bite-sized pieces.
Add chicken, and cook until all sides are browned.  (I always season at this step with a little bit of salt, and black pepper – don’t use too much salt, though, b/c the soy sauce is pretty salty.)
Add carrots and about 1 Cup of water, cook until carrots are about halfway done.
Add broccoli, cauliflower, and water chestnuts; cover.
Cook until vegetables are almost done.
Add sauce mixture (below)
Cook until vegetables are done.

For Sauce:
Mix together about 1 cup cold water, 1/2 Cup soy sauce, and 4 Tablespoons Corn Starch
Add this to Chicken/Vegetable mixture and bring to a boil.

Sauce will begin to thicken when it comes to a boil.  If you need the sauce to be thicker, just mix more water/soy sauce/cornstarch. (This has to be mixed before you pour it into the hot liquid b/c the corn starch will clump up if mixed with hot stuff)

Taste the sauce mixture after it thickens, and if you need more soy sauce, just add it directly to the mixture.

I serve this with brown rice.

Obvs, it’s not a very scientific procedure for the sauce – I just play with it each time until I get the consistency how I like it…and I’m sure it’s never the same twice  :)  BUT, with a little paitence, I’m sure you’ll be able to make it taste how you want, too.

*Hugs*